An Author's Guide to Writing SelfIInserts
by Talos the Saiyan
Summary: A guide for author's wishing commit that most heinous of writing crimes, the self-insert. Coming from someone who did a 30 chapter story starring several of them.
1. SIs in General

_**Introduction: **What is a Self-Insert? _

A self insert is when an author wittingly or unwittingly, enters their own fanfic. They are often associated with Mary Sues and bad authors. It is quite rare to find a good Self-Insert but it is possible. Writing a good one requires skill, knowledge of Canon and above all, self control. If you are lacking any one of these, the chances are your fic will fail. I've seen many Dragon Ball Z Self-inserts around, good and bad, and as an author who has written two successful ones I feel that I am in a position to help others do the same.

_**Summery: **_

Sometimes it seems that every Self-Insert ever has the word ''sucked'' in the summery, I urge you not to do it as well! This basically destroys any chance you have of people thinking the summery is original. From long experience I know that no matter how much you think that word should be in the summery, reviewers will think differently. Besides this, try to think outside the box when making a summery. Don't dwell so much on the inserted character but rather, on the reactions of the Canon characters. Which leads us to:

_**Plot: **_

If you write a Self-Insert, you had batter have a new plot. People want to be surprised, to be drawn into the story to feel it for themselves. All of this is incredibly hard, if not impossible, to do if they know the entire plot by heart. So if you introduce a new character, the plot may change a bit but not nearly enough to draw someone into the story. It is much better, and easier in the long run, to write your own plot. A vital factor in this is to make sure that the plot has something to do with the inserted character. You don't have to reveal it right away, but if your character just appeared for no reason and they never find out how or why he appeared, readers will feel disappointed and may decide not to read through the fic.

_**Origins: **_

Your character should have origins, in any Self-Insert, these will be vitally important. Even if they come from our world you will have to write about their background. Their personality is shaped by their background and you want your readers to know, and like, their personality so having background is important.

_**The Beginning: **_

Maybe one of most clichéd openings in the history of Self-Inserts is ''I was sucked down a mysterious portal into the world of (Insert Series here)'' Don't do this. From the very start, you must have a reason and a way for your character to travel into the new universe. Another clichéd opening is what I like to call: The Evil Character. In this opening, a dark being of incredible power tears open the barriers between worlds and sucks a normal person into the universe of Dragon Ball z for no adequately explained reason. This opening is workable, and rewarding if you can do it properly. It can be used for character development but I would suggest not trying it unless you are sure you wont mess it up because if you do , I can guarantee that most readers will just skip it and go read something else.

_**Self-Inserts:**_

It is very important to strike a balance here. Because this is a Self-Insert expect to be flamed at least once and the character insulted. Here are some tips to help you in writing a Self-insert.

1: Don't overpower the character. Its OK for them to have great power but do not make them stronger then the Canon characters. Or at least not at the very start. As an example, let us take my first Self-Insert: Dragon Ball Z Me. The character Strike is a pure-blooded Saiyan who has the power to destroy world yet in sixty-four chapters he never defeated or even fought a main character. He did however, fight numerous other inserts even killing several.

2: It is OK for the story and plot to revolve around your insert but please remember, the readers want a Dragon Ball Z story so that means you shouldn't twist the themes and ignore all the characters because if you do that, you're not writing fan faction any more you're writing original fiction wearing a mask.

3: One of the most clichéd plots in the entirety of any fandom: character A is the son of ( Insert main character here) and was sent to another world by ( Insert means here) with no memories. But now he's back so that he can single handedly save everyone!

Never, in a million years do this, It will lose you any reviewers you had. I've made this mistake in the past but luckily I was able to spot and correct it.

4: Saiyan, Human or Namek? This is a question posed by many Self-insert writers. Is it OK to turn your Self-Insert into a Saiyan? My answer: Yes. As long as you do it by a means that the readers and understand. So no: ''His power was so great that he instantly became a Saiyan!!1''

_**He or I?**_

One of the main things about Self-inserts is that they are mostly written in the first-person. Now I now that this seems the natural way to write a Self-Insert but I would suggest you write it in the third-person instead . It offers several benefits that the first-person doesn't. Firstly it is easier to describe things using the third-person and secondly, third-person makes everything much easier to follow.

_**Ego: **_

Is to be avoided at all costs. For the amateur Self-Insert writer it is better to be safe than sorry. Its' OK to have pride and such but making your character the toughest, smartest, cutest, Saiyan/Namek/Human ever is just wrong.

_**Fights and Deaths:**_

Be very careful when writing the death of a Canon character if it has anything to do with a

Self-Insert. If both the Canon character and the Self-insert were fighting on the same side, and the Canon char died, then you may be accused of loving your own character too much. To remedy this it is best to let your own character take the brunt of some attacks. Its OK to have them win battles but be careful to let them lose battles as well. Make sure they take wounds like any other character and be sure to show them being outsmarted by an enemy at least once.

_**Attacks:**_

Now, most Self-Inserts show up not knowing anything about Ki so they have to learn while they're there. Now here's the hard part. You have to be careful when you teach them something that is considered a signature move of another character. Better to let them invent their own attacks.

_**Training: **_

Training is something every Self-Insert should have to do sometime. Be sure to point out that they aren't very good at it the first time they try. Also be sure to spread their power-increase through-out the fic. So they can't just train once and be done with it. In order to maintain their level of power they have to train a lot and its worth mentioning that if you don't want to be accused of a Mary Sue.

In ending, I hope this guide helps anyone interested in writing a Self-Insert. They have a bad name but if you write with skill you can pull one off. If you want to ask any more questions feel from to message me.


	2. Villains

How to write Self-Inserts Part Two:

Villains:

Let us start with villains. A villain character is one who wants things to go their way; they want to bend and twist the world. In DBZ, they often want the dragon balls in order to make some selfish wish. This puts them into direct conflict with the heroes who will have to fight and vanquish them in order to earn their happy end.

Villains in general are some of the hardest characters to get right; being pointlessly evil just for the fun of it is very often boring. Villains need good motivation and what's more, they have to be interesting. They can be scum, they can be cowards and they can be outright bastards. But they need to be something that will hold their readers attention. Objectives, goals and personality are all important aspects of a villain.

But... things are not quite that simple when that villain is also a self-insert. Self-insert villains are one of the hardest if not THE hardest thing to do right. These SIs are not the good guys, they can't win in the end. Not unless you're writing a very dark fic, at least. But nether can they be seen to be total pushovers. They have to present some challenge and there has to be some moments in the fic where they are genuinely close to winning and there is nothing the good guys can do about it.

So...

How do you pull that off without having people accuse you of favouring your own insert? Its not easy. In fact, I'd advise you not to do it at all. Not unless you know what you're doing and can take some criticism because I promise you that no matter how good your writing is, someone will take issue that you used a self insert. If you really want to go down this road, I offer this list and hope that it helps you. It is a list of things I learned during my own work and during my long absence from FFnet writing for various other sites.

Ok, let's start with the basics.

**Origin**

A villain's origin is perhaps one of the most important things associated with them. Much like other characters, it helps shape their personality and gives opportunity for character development. However, unlike other characters, a villain is a bad guy and the back-story is a good way to convey just how this ended up happening. Think about it, even if you don't intend to include it with your fic, it'll still have effect on him and how he acts so even if you never intend for anyone else to know, map it out for yourself at least.

SI backstory as a whole is tricky because, to be frank, were most humans given the power of a Saiyan (For example) they likely would be a bad guy. Can you honestly tell me that - given the power of say, Vegeta - there was no one in the world at any point in your life that - if you had the power - you would reach out and harm? It doesn't even have to be killing and it doesn't have to last for more than a half second. The point stands that, if you had that power, jhust how easy would it be to give into these urges? To slide down that slippery slope. Lower and lower and never quite knowing just how far you've fallen?

That alone makes a good backstory for a villain. The bad guy who doesn't know he is one. He's just a normal guy who was given powers and they slowly began to corrupt him. Maybe he still thinks he's a hero. Maybe he's more of a tragic figure than a pure villain. In any case, this would make for a somewhat compelling and dare I say, somewhat sympathetic backstory. It could have happened to anyone. So when we see this character he's not only an insert but you've got part of the audience thinking.

_That could be me._

This is the secret of the villain self insert. You MUST connect, you have to make the villain memorable, their motivations hard hitting. Otherwise they will be condemned as just another SI on a power trip. A good villain can make a story, a bad one can break it.

With SIs, you ether get good or bad. There is no inbetween.

**Motivations**

This ties into the first topic. An important part of the backstory of any character is the motivation. That which drives them to do what they are doing. It could be for any reason, maybe they're jealous, maybe they were driven mad with power. Maybe they just want to watch the world burn. But if you want your villain to be memorable you have to make sure that the motivation fits. You have to be sure that you have thought this through - if you make mistakes, they WILL be spotted. A villain could get away with some flaws in writing but an SI villain never will. To be frank, you have to get it right and you have to do it the first time.

This is why I don't recommend SI villains unless you know what you're doing. I know that I have been empathising this a lot and I am going to keep on doing it.

**Every flaw will be scrutinised. Nothing will be missed. **

The unpleasant truth is that SI's have a somewhat justified bad name. I can count the number of good SIs I know of on one hand whereas the number of bad ones I have seen and never even bothered to read would fill a whole page on Word. This means that people will come into your story and expect it to be bad. It is your job to prove them wrong and to do it as early as possible. You'll never convince everyone so don't even try. But if you are lucky and if you are skilled you will be able to convince some.

Treasure them for what they are. A small readership can quickly grow but a story that attracts none is doomed to obscurity. As someone who has had that happen more often than not, its not something you want to happen to yours.

This is where motivation comes in. Motivation is often rip with flaws of the characters - jealousy, revenge, hatred. All these things go to show that your SI is not perfect that they are human and flawed and thus relatable. You can use this to ensure that your character does not come off as boring and invincible, even if in the grand scheme of things, they pretty much ARE invincible.

Humanizing your villains is almost as important as humanizing your heroes and one who forgets that will have an uphill struggle from the very start. Take it from someone who had to learn this the hard way, people will like it better if your villain has flaws.

**Likeability.**

Likeability is a touchy subject in a villain. It depends a lot. Some on the character of the villian, some on their origins. Villains who are mad men bent on revenge or who are distant gods with strange, alien mindsets don't really need to concern themselves with this.

Indeed, it isn't required for any villain at all and using it is very dependent on the theme and context of the scene in question. However, if you do use and use it right,l it will greatly help in making people believe that your villain is both a real being and a proper character.

I spoke before of how writing any version of an SI is an uphill struggle. Well, this helps with that. Make 'em likeable. Not too likeable of course as they are still a villain but you should make sure they have objectives and goals that are understandable, that they treat their underlings well and don't pointlessly kill them just to show how evil they are.

''But Talos'' I hear you say. ''My villain is a real bad guy, how can I make him seem likeable without ruining his character?'' This is a good point and one that must be addressed.

You don't have to have him crack jokes to be likeable, (Though that can help.)

Allow me to introduce you to two characters I created for a Prototype fic. Nether of them are SIs however the same principle applies.

Firstly, we have Marcus. Marcus is a supersoldier who hunts down people his organisation disagrees with and has no qualms killing them off if he feels they need to be, or he gets his orders. He's a hunter and a killer. He's killed innocents before and he knows it. He also knows he'll do it again if ordered.

He's also a snarky, jokey personalty who comments on the absurdities of his situation and even makes references to other series. When I first wrote Marcus, he was intended to be a one-chapter thing. A super soldier to make a few comments and be quickly slaughtered by the hero in a quest for vengeance.

But...

He was too well liked to die. People liked him, none doubted that he was ultimately a bad guy, but he quickly become so popular I had no choice but to keep him and do you know what? To date, he's probably one of the most well liked characters in the entire fic.

Next, we have Covton. Covton is not like Marcus. He doesn't joke, he doesn't snark and his personality is cold and calculating. A far more traditional villain. However, he does partner with Covton and though the two argue and bicker, it adds a humanizing effect to them so that even though they're the bad guys, they are well liked.

They play off each other. Covton, the cold calculating monster and Marcus, the happy-go-lucky killer. Each of them menacing in their own right but together, why together they are far more than they could ever be alone!

I've actually had people interested in me doing a spin off series concerning only those two, how they met and how they became friends.

Doesn't that tell you just how big a difference a little likeability can bring?

**Plans and plotting**

Now, one thing that every evil character does at one time or another is plot. Its like breathing to them, they need a plan to take out the heroes so its time to sit down, assume the plotting position, pick up the fluffy white cat and think long and hard on how they are going to do it.

Traditional villains tend to spring surprises on the heroes, overwhelm them with numbers and use their cunning to bring their more powerful opponents to their knees.

And why not? All of these things make for good tension and good drama. But an SI is a different matter. People will be keen to jump on you and to say that there was no foreshadowing, that you just pulled it out of your ass to let your SI win the fight.

You must learn to foreshadow in such a way as the general gist of the plan is there to see, but keep the specifics hidden so as to preserve drama. It is not easy and I won't promise that it will always help but most of the times it does help if - when accused of pulling something out of your ass - you can just point to a passage with a hidden meaning or to some foreshadowing you put in earlier. It helps to show both that you are not making this up as you go along and shows that you are treating the canon characters with respect.

Which leads us right into...

**Treat the Canon Characters with Respect**

Now, as a villain your SI would doubtless be facing their canon enemies at some point and, if you want any drama at all, it should be clear that they have at least some chance of victory. This is a fine line for any writer to walk, even moreso if you're working on an SI. You want to make it clear that your character is a threat, but you cannot do this by making the heroes stupid, incompetent or otherwise demeaning them in order to build up your own character.

Never, ever do that. It will only end badly. Showing a lack of respect for canon is one of the hallmarks of a Mary Sue fic and the one thing that you do not want your viewers to see. But what do I mean by respect? Do I mean that you can't change things? Obviously if I meant that, the chances for a fun SI would be very small indeed.

No, what I speak of is, in general terms, related to the practice known as ''bashing''. Making a canon character that you dislike look bad because you don't want them to compare well to your own character. Never do it.

It is perfectly OK to show your SI as competent and as threatening, its fine to show them out-thinking the heroes on occasion. Just remember to show how they did it and to make it believable. Make sure it complies with canon as best it can and ensure that your villain is truly threatening and would be capable of such an act.

**Deaths**

Ah, deaths. One of the most tricky parts in any fic. Since your SI is a villain, it is fairly safe to assume they'll be trying to kill the heroes. Depending on the maturity of the fic and how dark it is, they may even succeed. But how do you go about this without demeaning the canon characters? It is very important that you do it right, winning effortlessly is yet another trait of the Mary Sue and so, one that your readers will be on constant lookout for.

In order to make the death seem ''natural'' within the context of the fic ensure that it makes sense. If your villain is a schemer, have them work on the scheme for a long while, have it foreshadowed and most importantly of all, give the hero a good send off.

Don't just have them die quickly. That's a mistake that your readership will likely hate you for. No hero would die without a fight and even the best laid plans have flaws. Ensure that it is a struggle for your villain. Ensure that the hero leaves a scar, so to speak. Make sure that you're not just killing off the hero to show how ''for teh evulz'' your character is. Make sure that they have a valid reason to do it and a valid way to carry it out.

Now, likewise since your character is a villain, there is a better than even chance that the fic will end with his own death. In this instance, the rules apply to him rather than the heroes. You have spent the whole fic building up this mighty villain, you've humanized him a bit - not enough that he loses his edge, but enough that he is still a man and not some faceless threat that must be exterminated. He's brought out his plans, he's played all his cards, he's faced the heroes and in his moment of triumph, they have managed to turn the tables.

So how do you end his life? A quick shot to the back of the head is quite anticlimactic which, unless that is the purpose, you will likely want to avoid.

The same rules apply here. Make it big, make it dramatic ad ensure that it makes sense. And always make sure that he leaves scars. If your character is some big villain and one of the worst threats that the Z-Fighters ever faced, they won't get out unscathed even if they win the fight. Be sure to show that your characters gives as good as he gets.

And, that is that I suppose. A second chapter quite a few years after the first. Next on things that I will look at it antiheroes and how to do them. Judging by previous showing, that chapter should be out sometime in 2020.

I look forward to seeing you all then!


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